Halohydrins orientation

Figure 11.5 shows a mechanism that has been postulated for this reaction. First, an electrophilic mercury species adds to the double bond to form a cyclic mercurinium ion. Note how similar this mechanism is, including its stereochemistry and regiochemistry, to that shown in Figure 11.4 for the formation of a halohydrin. The initial product results from anti addition of Fig and OH to the double bond. In the second step, sodium borohydride replaces the mercury with a hydrogen with random stereochemistry. (The mechanism for this step is complex and not important to us at this time.) The overall result is the addition of H and OH with Markovnikov orientation. 

Orientation of Halohydrin Formation Even though a halonium ion is involved, rather than a carbocation, the extended version of Markovnikov s rule applies to halohydrin formation. When propene reacts with chlorine water, the major product has the... 

Orientation of halohydrin formation The more substituted carbon of the chloronium ion bears more positive charge than the less substituted carbon. Attack by water occurs on the more substituted carbon to give the Markovnikov product. 

The Markovnikov orientation observed in halohydrin formation is explained by the structure of the halonium ion intermediate. The two carbon atoms bonded to the halogen have partial positive charges, with a larger charge (and a weaker bond to the halogen) on the more substituted carbon atom (Figure 8-5). The nucleophile (water) attacks this more substituted, more electrophilic carbon atom. The result is both anti stereochemistry and Markovnikov orientation. 

Halohydrins are easily generated by treating alkenes with aqueous solutions of halogens. Bromine water and chlorine water add across double bonds with Markovnikov orientation (Section 8-11). The following reaction shows cyclopentene reacting with chlorine water to give the chlorohydrin. Treatment of the chlorohydrin with aqueous sodium hydroxide gives the epoxide. 

Halohydrins. The reaction of a slight excess of 1, Br, or Cl, and of P(C6H,)j in CH2CI2 with an epoxide results in a halohydrin in generally high yield. The orientation depends in part on the bulkiness of the halide ion, but the halogen ion generally attacks the less substituted carbon atom. 

Halohydrin formation with subsequent reductive dehalogcnation represents an interesting variation on the theme. For example, when the enone rac-1 was treated with A -bromosuccin-imide in aqueous dimethyl sulfoxide, the bromohydrin roc-2 was formed, predominantly as one diastereomer (the relative configuration at C-3 was not established)23. Reduction with tri-butyltin hydride gave the diastereomeric products exo-3 and endo-3 in 27% and 63% yield, respectively. Here, the product distribution can be explained by the preferred attack of the hydride reagent on the exo-face of the intermediate bicyclic carbon radical, i.e., by kinetic control. Thus, the predominant endo-orientation of the 2-(2-hydroxypropyl) substituent at C-3 was achieved, in contrast to what may be expected from a reversible, i.e., thermodynamically controlled, hydration of the enone rac-1. 

One further point. We have encountered the two-step addition of unsym-metrical reagents in which the first step is attack by positive halogen formation of halohydrins (Sec. 6.14), and ionic addition of IN3 and BrN3 (Problem 7, p. 247). The orientation is what would be expected if a carbonium ion were the intermediate. Propylene chlorohydrin, for example, is CH3CHOHCH2CI IN3 adds to terminal alkenes to yield RCH(N3)CH2l. Yet the exclusively anti stereochemistry... 

This section will begin with a simple method for producing epoxides that uses the reaction of alkenes and hypohalous acids (generated by the reactions CI2 + H2O HOCl or Br2 + H2O HOBr) to give the trans-(or anti-) halohydrin as the major product. An example is the conversion of cyclohexene to bromohydrin 149 (sec. 2.10.C). Subsequent treatment with a base such as sodium hydride generates the alkoxide (150), which is anti- to the adjacent bromine, which anti- orientation leads to displacement of halide... 

How can the orientation of the halogen and hydroxyl be explained in these reactions For example, in propylene chlorohydrin, the chlorine is attached to the terminal carbon, not the middle one. This orientation, and the others, can be accounted for by the mechanism of halohydrin formation. It involves intermediate carbonium ions. 

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